This photo etch detail set from Eduard provides an
enhancement set for undercarriage bays/doors of the Tupolev Tu-2 kit by Xuntong
(pronounced Shun Ton) Models. The set contains one large PE fret in traditional
plain brass

The main wheel bays on the Xutong kit are fairly sparse and
whilst most WWII aircraft did not have complex wheel bays with extensive
plumbing like most modern aircraft, they did have internal ribbing, spars and
panel detail.

The set includes a complete set of side and top panel
details for the main wells. It also provides details for the undercarriage
strut (hydraulic lines etc).

Very little modifications will be needed to the kit parts to
use this photo etch set as it is designed to attach directly over top of the
kit plastic parts. Where it is necessary to remove plastic details from the kit
parts Eduard clearly identifies these in red on the instructions.

Some assembly of smaller sub-sections is required as you
build up the mounting points for the undercarriage strut in the roof of each
bay.

This set requires you to attach some fairly large sections
of PE to kit parts with tricky curves (like the interior side walls of the
wheel bay). To allow some wiggle room as the glue dries to get the position
spot on I’d suggest using slow drying (Gel) super glue or you may find
accurately positioning the PE parts a challenging and frustrating exercise.

The Eduard instructions do not indicate that any thinning or
reduction of the kit parts is required prior to attachment of the PE parts. I
always like to double check that this won’t cause fit problems later on by dry
fitting first anyway.

Eduard provide parts to represent the hydraulic lines for
the brakes. I am not a big fan of using PE to model circular pipes or rods as
it does not look convincing, better to use copper or lead wire in my
experience.

This is quite a large fret and care will need to be taken
when working with it avoid accidental warping or bending. In fact it may be
sensible to cut the fret in half before you start to work on it to minimize
this risk.

Once again Eduard have done their homework and provided us
with a simple yet effective set to enhance the Xutong model. As PE sets go this
one is not complex and I’d think it’s a great choice for modellers looking to
cut their teeth on incorporating PE into their models for the first time.